SPRINGFIELD, MA (WGGB / WSHM) – The deadline for Bay State college students to get the flu shot was formally prolonged from yesterday by means of February 28.
(Photograph from Western Mass Information)
However through the coronavirus pandemic, is the flu a priority for well being officers this yr?
Whereas all eyes are on the COVID-19 pandemic, as everybody heads into the brand new yr, final yr, this time, the coronavirus was not on our radar.
“We came upon, January and February, we knew, however March was when it appeared to begin to be taken extra significantly,” mentioned Louise Cardellina, a medical assistant for AFC Pressing Care.
In January 2020, our space was coping with one other troublesome virus: influenza.
Cardellina informed Western Mass Information that her focus is presently on COVID-19. However that does not imply the flu will not be an issue within the subsequent few months.
“Yesterday was the primary time I had somebody take a look at constructive for influenza,” he mentioned. “I noticed it in a single individual, and which means it is about to return out in additional individuals.”
The CDC stories that flu instances are a lot decrease this season than final and that it contains not solely western Massachusetts, however all the nation as properly, with every stage reporting below-average flu instances.
“Proper now, it is not quite common, however that does not imply it is not going to be like that,” Cardellina famous.
That is why Cardallina is encouraging everybody – college students, retirees, work-from-home employees, or front-line employees – to get a flu shot whereas they wait for his or her COVID-19 vaccine.
“Getting the flu shot now will shield you in two weeks and shield you for all the season,” he added. “No matter you are able to do to remain wholesome, not get sick and unfold extra illness, do what you may.
She informed Western Mass Information that by avoiding the flu, she is immediately serving to healthcare employees and relieving stress in hospitals.
“Now isn’t the time to not take issues significantly. If there may be ever a time to take one thing significantly, it’s this yr. COVID-19 is there,” he mentioned. “The flu is popping out and we need to get by means of this yr. We wish individuals to be wholesome and we do not need individuals to die.”
